Tamil Nadu set to keep tabs on abortions

Chennai: The Directorate of Medical Services (DMS) has introduced a new rule, which would require doctors to report the number of pregnancies and abortions on a regular basis under the 'Save the Girl Child at Home' scheme. The portal or registry on which the information will be updated will go live mid January, said DMS officials.

23 scan centres in the state were found revealing the sex of babies in 2016, while 42 were found doing the same since 2013, which is against the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PCPNDT) Act 1994. The directorate therefore introduced the scheme after it was found that in the past six years, there was a definite dip in the sex ratio at birth. Officials alleged that the main cause for the same was sex selective abortions.

“The sex ratio is very low in many districts (911 in 2016). The scheme therefore aims at improving the same. The Supreme Court is also reviewing these efforts,” said Dr. K. Senguttuvan, Director of Medical Services.

“The scheme aims at ensuring that all Medical Termination of Pregnancies (MTPs) are done within the scope of the MTP Act 1971 and also to stop all irregular MTPs,” he added.

Following the introduction of the scheme, centres and hospitals were made aware of the regulations that require to be followed. “MTP centres should have basic documentation. All centres should maintain case slips - which should contain data permission, name and the age of the person, ultrasound reports and other scans - for MTPs that are done at their respective centres and hospitals,” said M. Kamalakanan, Superintendent, DMS.

With the MTPs being divided into two categories - ‘MTP for a good cause – social MTP’ and the other targeted against female foeticide, the officials hope to bring down the rate of illegal abortions and quackery in the state.

“Every licensed scan centre has to have some basic record for which the order has been provided by the government as well. Every patient who walks into a centre or hospital and gets a scan done, must be registered,” said an official at the DMS. “The most important factor is to do the scan with the consent of the patient,” she said adding that portal will therefore have every detail in writing.